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“You mean to tell me that damaged goods won’t fetch top dollar? I’m shocked, Armando. SHOCKED,” I said, still trying to provoke him to anger. I couldn’t do anything to defend myself, but I was hoping for a miracle here and my anger had completely taken over. “Sal isn’t going to be too happy with you when he finds out. You might’ve been able to sell me with just a front picture, but now all the angles are just totally fucked up so I’m worthless. What’s he going to do to you when he finds out you fucked this up? What’s he going to think when I tell him you’re the one that gave me these bruises?” I saw the flash of uncertainty across his face before it quickly changed to anger. He stood for a moment contemplating what to do next.
I could hear them beating Ivan in the other room in my earpiece. He was provoking them as well. I trusted him to have a good reason for doing so, but it was looking more and more like we really were at the disadvantage here. Then, I heard it. My earpiece beeped. They’re close.
Armando had been contemplating his next move. He clearly decided that violence was the answer. He walked to me, angrier than I thought was humanly possible for him. “Do you know how long I’ve waited to do this?” he said as he punched me in the stomach. “Women are meant to be seen not heard, but you can’t keep your fucking mouth shut. EVER.” His voice was just below a scream when he punched me a second time. I couldn’t do anything but take it, since I couldn’t even move my arms to protect myself.
“So, I’m guessing no pictures then?” I asked, just to piss him off more. Armando was stronger than Salvadori, but I’d definitely endured much worse. I could take this. Armando backhanded me, forcing me to take a step to the side to keep from falling down.
“My first wife didn’t know when to shut up either. Do you know what happened to her?” he asked as he punched me in the stomach another time. “I beat her to death when she wouldn’t shut up.”
“Did you get her hooked on coke like you did Giana?” I asked. He paused for a moment. He didn’t know we knew about Giana’s little habit. “You know cocaine is a stimulant, you dumb motherfucker. If you want them to be quieter, you should’ve gone with heroin. Or got them hooked on another opioid.” I had him confused for a second. Clearly, he didn’t know the difference. “Seriously? This is news to you? How have you lasted this long in the business? You’re too fucking stupid to be a criminal mastermind. Who’s pulling your strings, puppet?”
Okay, I might’ve gone a little overboard there, judging by his reaction. I also knew that whoever was connected to my earpiece would be able to hear this, so I was trying to get as much information out of him as I could. Armando had lost complete control and was just beating me as severely as he could manage. He finally hit me so hard that I fell to the floor. That opened the door for him to kick me. I tried to curl up as tight as I could, but it wasn’t easy with my hands behind my back and my ankles chained to the floor. I felt my left shoulder dislocate after one of his kicks and I screamed. I had been able to stay silent as I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, but I couldn’t hold it in when my shoulder came out of its socket. Armando delivered a second kick to the same arm and I felt my bone break.
He had taken a step back from me when we both heard an explosion. It rocked the building. He cursed under his breath. I just laughed at him. “You’re a dead man,” I said, coughing up blood. I was still on the floor, now trying not to move or think about the severe pain in my arm.
“Sephie? Can you hear me?” I heard Adrik’s voice in my ear. I just cleared my throat, hoping he understood. “I’m coming,” he said.
“Fifth floor,” I said in Russian. Armando heard me and turned to me once more, delivering yet another kick to my torso. We could clearly hear gunshots now. The two guys that had been beating Ivan in the next room now came to the room where Armando was beating me.
“A building at the end of the block just exploded. The guys downstairs went to check it out. They found us,” one of the guys said.
“Are you excited?” I asked, trying to sit up just a little. I was starting to have trouble breathing. I think he broke my ribs. They looked down at me, confused. “Excited to see your buddies we killed? Because you’re about to see them again.”
“If you can answer, how many are on the floor with you?” Stephen asked in my ear. Since Ivan was alone now, he said, “Armando is with Sephie and the two guys that were with me are likely there now too. I haven’t seen anyone else, but we’ve been kept in a room the whole time. Princess, cough once if that’s all you’ve seen.” I coughed once. “Got it, Seph. We’re coming,” Stephen said.
Ivan said, “Across the floor from the elevators are offices. I don’t know where they took Sephie, but there’s a short hallway to the side of the front offices. I’m guessing that’s where she is.” I coughed once more.
“Thanks, Seph.”
While Stephen and Ivan had been talking, Armando was trying to formulate a plan with the two guys. He pulled his phone out to make a call. Whoever he called didn’t pick up, which forced him to slam his phone down to the floor.
“I would suggest running now if you’re going to do it. They’re coming for you. Run to the roof and jump. Otherwise, you’re going to have a long, slow, painful death,” I said. “Especially you, Armando. Once Ghost sees me like this, you’re going to know pain like you’ve never known it before.” I heard all the guys cursing quietly in my earpiece. I said, in Russian, “His butthole just clenched a little.” I couldn’t keep from laughing a little, but it made my ribs hurt to do so, so I ended up cursing loudly.
“What are we going to do with her and the guy in the other room?” one of the guys asked.
“Kill him. Bring her with us,” Armando said. One guy came to take the shackles off my ankles while the other left the room quickly to take care of Ivan. As soon as my legs were free, I kicked the guy in the face as hard as I could. He went tumbling backward. “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Armando said as he walked toward me to grab me. He grabbed the arm that he’d broken to pull me up, causing me to scream. He slapped me and told me to shut up. My arms were still tied behind my back, so once again, I was forced to just take it.
We heard one gunshot from the other room. My heart dropped. “Ivan!” I yelled. Armando slapped me again, yelling, “I told you to shut up!”
I heard Ivan in my earpiece. “Princess, you know I wouldn’t leave you alone.”
“We’re coming in now,” Stephen said.
“Move to the left when you come through the door. Stay along that wall. They won’t be able to see you. You’ll come to the room where I am. Move quickly. Armando will be expecting his guy back,” Ivan said.
I looked at Armando. “You know, I said months ago that you had a savior complex. You like to pick damaged people because you think you can save them. I was only partly wrong. You pick damaged people because they’re easier for you to control. You don’t have a savior complex; you have a superiority complex. I just haven’t figured out if your bumbling idiot persona is an act or if you’re actually this stupid. Not gonna lie, I’m leaning hard toward you’re just this stupid.” I was trying to keep him focused on me to make it easier for the guys to surprise him. I could feel Adrik’s anger now that he was closer, but I was in so much pain that it was difficult for me to feel anything other than that. I heard Ivan laugh in my earpiece. “Which brings up my earlier question of who is pulling your strings? Is it Giana’s father? Ricardo? Both?” I asked. Armando had been looking toward the door while I talked to him, but he spun around to look at me when I mentioned Ricardo’s name. Bingo.
He walked toward me again and I braced myself for another blow. “I’m going to tape your fucking mouth shut,” he said. If I thought I overdid it before, I was mistaken. The look on Armando’s face when he walked back to me actually made me fear for my life this time. He was so angry that I’d figured out who was controlling him that he might actually kill me this time. I saw movement over his shoulder and the other guy in the room dropped to the ground. I could barely hear the gun with the silencer attached. Armando turned when he heard the guy hit the floor. Adrik and Stephen were standing in front of him.
“Boss, I’m glad you’re here. Sal had them kidnapped. I’ve been trying to get her out of here,” Armando said, switching flawlessly back to the persona that he was a friend to Adrik. He said it so smoothly that it was almost believable. It might’ve been if they hadn’t heard him beating me earlier through my earpiece. Ivan walked into the room behind Adrik and Stephen. He pulled his earpiece from his ear and held it up for Armando to see. I couldn’t see Armando’s face, but I’m sure he knew he’d fucked up.
“Oh, by the way, she has one too,” Ivan said.
“We heard everything,” Adrik said. He took his jacket off, never taking his eyes off Armando. He walked slowly to me, taking a knife from one of his pants pockets and cutting the zip tie off my wrists. I tried to hold in the scream when my arm fell limp to my side. I saw Adrik flinch, but he stayed quiet. Even through my pain, I could feel his anger. It was to a level I’d never seen before, but he looked like he was in complete control. He wrapped his jacket around me, then put his fingers under my chin. “Can you give me five minutes, my love?” he asked as he pressed his lips to mine gently. I smiled at him. “Take as long as you need,” I said. He kissed me tenderly once more, then turned back to Armando.
“Ivan, stay with her,” he said in Russian. “Stephen, with me.” He grabbed Armando’s arm, twisting it behind his back painfully as he walked to the other side of the room, farther away from me and Ivan.
I looked at Ivan as he stood next to me. He looked like Hell. “You look terrible, Super Squish,” I said.
